To raise as much money as possible in your church’s capital campaign, you must include the elements that have proven to produce outstanding spiritual and financial results. As a result, you will be able to complete your building project and expand your ministry for Christ.
Following are the 8 dynamic elements that we use to get stellar results for our church capital campaign clients.
We have a lot to cover, but if you go step-by-step through everything in this guide, you’ll be on track to a successful campaign. Let’s go!
1. THEMED COMMUNICATION MATERIALS
An essential element of every successful capital campaign is professionally designed communication materials which ensure “top of mind” awareness of the campaign and explain the need and the vision for the project.
Using the same visual theme and logo in all your campaign communications will make them stand out from other church materials and will be a constant visual reminder of your campaign. Do this:
[ ] Hire a professional church capital campaign design/print agency. (We partner exclusively with Abstract Union because they design & print beautiful custom materials at the best prices (www.abstractunion.com). Tell Rebeca that Rod says “Hi.”
[ ] Work with your designer to choose a visual theme and logo to be used on all your communication pieces.
[ ] Choose a slogan such as “Time to Build” or “Building for Generations.”
[ ] Design a case statement brochure.
[ ] Write the key elements for the case statement (Pastor’s Introduction, History and Present Need, Testimonials, Vision/Solution, Financial Summary, Call to Action, etc.).
[ ] Find or take photos for the case statement.
[ ] Prepare a commitment card.
[ ] Prepare a Kickoff Event invitation card.
[ ] Distribute the case statement, commitment card, privacy envelope, FAQ document, and Bible study curriculum at the Kickoff Event.
[ ] Distribute other themed materials from Abstract Union to create excitement (banners, posters, t-shirts, mugs, children’s piggy banks, etc.).
[ ] Use real, physical mail to send Kickoff Event and Advance Commitments Event invitations, pastor’s letters, thank you letters, Follow-up reports, and personal giving statements, etc. (Do NOT depend on email and other digital means.)
2. KICKOFF EVENT
This is a church-wide banquet whose purpose is to begin the process of raising spiritual and financial support for the campaign by communicating excitement, information, and spiritual truths and by building unity in the church body.
[ ] Schedule the Kickoff Event for the Friday or Saturday before the first Sunday in the 7-week public phase of the campaign.
[ ] Choose the venue. (A commercial venue makes it more special.)
[ ] If you choose to use your own church facility, hire cooking and serving staff. You want all members free to experience the event.
[ ] Decide on a plate or buffet dinner. (A buffet is more efficient.)
[ ] Make it the most special event in the history of the church.
[ ] Don’t charge members. Pay for it out of the capital campaign budget.
[ ] Send invitations at least 30 days before the banquet.
[ ] If possible, provide child care.
[ ] Plan an agenda of 2 ½ hours.
[ ] Include great food, joyful worship music, testimonies, a 15-minute devotional by the pastor, a 20-minute message by a guest speaker, distribution of the communications materials, an overview of the campaign by the Executive Director, and a presentation of the building plans and options.
3. STEWARDSHIP BIBLE STUDIES
Because God uses His word to stimulate faith and generous giving, every member should be involved in six small group Bible studies on stewardship during the six weeks of the public phase of the campaign leading up to Commitment Sunday.
[ ] Choose a small group Bible study curriculum/devotional on stewardship. We use and recommend Giving That Pleases God: 36 Stewardship Devotions by Dr. Rod Rogers. (Contact us for a license to use it in your campaign.)
[ ] Print and distribute the curriculum/devotional to all members of the church.
[ ] Challenge all members to read the small group materials every day for the six weeks of the public phase of the campaign.
[ ] Recruit small group discussion leaders.
[ ] Train the small group leaders in basic techniques of small group Bible study discussion.
[ ] Have each small group leader speak personally to each member of his/her group about the campaign each week to answer questions, overcome objections, and encourage participation.
[ ] Invite every member to join a small group for the six weeks of the public phase of the campaign.
[ ] Recruit host families to open their homes for the small group studies.
[ ] Aim for 100 percent congregational involvement in the Bible studies.
4. BIBLICAL PREACHING
God uses His word to stir the hearts of His people to give (Exod. 35:21-22; 36:2-7). Therefore, the stewardship series the pastor preaches is a vital part of a spiritually and financially successful capital campaign. Here’s what to do:
[ ] Preach 7 sermons on stewardship.
[ ] Preach a sermon on the biblical principles of stewardship and giving (Psa. 24:1; Deut. 8:17-18; 1 Cor. 4:2).
[ ] Preach a sermon on the biblical principles of generous giving (1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 8-9).
[ ] Preach a sermon on the emotional rewards for generous giving (Acts 20:35).
[ ] Preach a sermon on the spiritual rewards for generous giving (2 Cor. 9:7).
[ ] Preach a sermon on the eternal rewards for generous giving (Matt. 6:1920; 19:30; Luke 19:1127).
[ ] Preach a sermon on the financial rewards for generous giving (Luke 6:38; 2 Cor. 9:611).
[ ] Preach a sermon on God as the source of generous giving (1 Chron. 29).
5. PRAYER VIGILS
In addition to encouraging individual prayer, the prayer team should also schedule two 24-hour church-wide prayer vigils. (The second prayer vigil can be shortened to 12 hours if necessary.)
This is a time of continual, around-the-clock prayer. The goal is to have at least one person praying at all times during a 24-hour period to seek God’s favor, protection, discernment, and blessing for your church, your people, and the capital campaign.
[ ] Distribute a list of prayer requests for the capital campaign and encourage people to pray daily.
[ ] Solicit prayer requests from the members.
[ ] Schedule Prayer Vigil # 1 from Friday to Saturday evening before the second of 7 Sundays in the Public Presentation Phase. (This Vigil is the most important.)
[ ] Schedule Prayer Vigil # 2 from Friday to Saturday evening before Commitment Sunday.
[ ] Print the list of prayer requests of the members along with specific requests for the capital campaign.
[ ] Divide the 24-hour period into 60-minute slots. (If your congregation is large, you can use 30-minute increments.)
[ ] Distribute the schedule of hours for prayer.
[ ] Start signing people up one month before each prayer vigil.
[ ] Schedule at least 2 people per time slot to insure an unbroken chain of prayer.
[ ] Have people go to the church building, or other physical site, to pray. (The power of the Vigil is greatly diminished when using virtual options such as Zoom.)
[ ] Provide water, soft drinks, coffee, or other drinks.
[ ] Provide security.
[ ] Alert your local law enforcement to expect people to be coming and going during the night.
6. TESTIMONIES
Testimonies by individuals or couples are inspiring and provide an opportunity to draw a connection between faithful giving and the spiritual results produced through the ministries that are enabled by this giving. The pastor, other key leaders, and regular members should share their stories.
[ ] Include 2 testimonies for the Kickoff Event, the Advance Commitments Event, and for each service during the 7-week public phase of the campaign.
[ ] Recruit people whose lives have been changed by the ministry of the church, are committed to the building project, and who plan to give generously to the campaign.
[ ] Train them to tell the story about how God has changed their life through the ministry of the church and about their personal support for the building project and the capital campaign.
[ ] Train them to share the process they used to determine their level of giving along with the amount they plan to give to the capital campaign.
[ ] Make each testimony 3 to 5 minutes long.
[ ] Record the testimonies on video.
7. ADVANCE COMMITMENTS EVENT
This event is designed to receive the 3-year commitments of the leaders in advance so the collective total may be announced one Sunday in advance of Commitment Sunday.
This inspires the congregation to follow the leaders’ example of sacrificial giving.
[ ] Choose the venue (home, church fellowship hall, etc.).
[ ] Choose the format (coffee & dessert or full meal, full program or simple gathering).
[ ] Schedule the event at least 9 days in advance of Commitment Sunday.
[ ] Mail invitations to the campaign executive committee directors, church staff, lay leaders, and potential major donors.
[ ] Bring extra commitment cards and privacy envelopes.
[ ] Have capital campaign testimonies.
[ ] Review the vision and project for which the church is running the capital campaign.
[ ] Give time for people to complete their commitment cards.
[ ] Collect and total the completed 3-year commitment cards.
[ ] Announce the collective total of the advance commitments in the Sunday service one week before Commitment Sunday.
8. INITIAL SACRIFICIAL OFFERING
You must emphasize both an Initial Sacrificial Offering from how God has already blessed the giver, as well as a 3-year commitment to give as God provides.
This initial offering received on Commitment Sunday, along with the 3-year commitment cards, sets the tone for subsequent donations and inspires others to give generously.
[ ] Put an explanation about the initial sacrificial offering and its importance in your case statement booklet.
[ ] Include a box to check and a place to indicate the amount of the initial sacrificial offering, on the commitment card.
[ ] Explain the importance of the initial sacrificial offering at the Kickoff Event.
[ ] Explain the importance of the initial sacrificial offering at the Advance Commitments Event.
[ ] Talk about the initial sacrificial offering from the pulpit during the 7-week Public Phase of the campaign.